1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the technology of a microscope, and more specifically to the technology of a camera for a microscope for shooting an observed image on the microscope.
2. Description of the Related Art
A camera for a microscope can be equipped with a scale function for easily grasping the practical size of a sample displayed on an observed image, and a measure function for measuring the distance between any two points in the observed image. In the above-mentioned functions, the scale function is to show an observer an image of graphics indicating a ruler with a scale, an image of a character indicating the magnification of a microscope, etc. to allow the observer to grasp the size of the observed image. The notifying method normally displays these images by superposing them on the observed image.
Relating to the scale function of a camera for a microscope, for example, the technology disclosed by the Japanese Published Patent Application No. 2004-258495 is widely known. In this technology using a camera for a microscope capable of displaying a scale, a CCU (camera control unit) acquires the information about a microscope objective lens being used to optimize the magnification and scale of a scale image included in the observed image by generating a scale image according to the information.
In addition, for example, the technology disclosed in the Japanese Published Patent Application No. 2003-32524 is also well known. The technology enables a scale to be displayed on an image of the camera, thereby realizing the display of a scale appropriate for the observed image, and superposing the scale on both live image and still image recorded.
Furthermore, as the technology related to the present invention, for example, the technology disclosed by the Japanese Published Patent Application No. 2005-37683 is well known. This technology is to suppress the high intensity illumination, generated by the optical path of the microscope being released after temporary optical cutoff in a microscope operation for switching the objective lens of the microscope, of moving pictures captured by a camera for the microscope. This technology suppresses the over-exposure (over-bright) state while the optical cutoff is released that is caused by the exposure control during the cutoff of an optical path after temporary stop of the exposure control upon detection of the cutoff of an optical path by the camera. In addition, for example, the technology disclosed by the Japanese Patent Publication No. 3909928 is also well known. This technology controls the over-bright state of an image while the optical cutoff is released by temporarily stopping the AGC (automatic gain control) when the optical path of a microscope is cut off by the rotating operation of an objective revolver for holding the objective lens of the microscope.